New Delhi, Nov. 14 -- The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday arrested Manoj Gaur, former executive chairman and CEO of Jaiprakash Associates Ltd (JAL) and former managing director of Jaypee Infratech Ltd (JIL), in a Rs.14,599-crore money laundering probe linked to the alleged large-scale diversion of homebuyers' funds within the Jaypee Group. He was arrested under Section 19 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) after what officials described as months of "detailed investigation and analysis of evidence". Later in the day, Gaur was produced before additional sessions judge Dhirendra Rana at Patiala House Courts, where ED sought seven days' custody to interrogate him further. The court granted the agency five days' custody after hearing arguments from both sides. According to a senior ED official, the probe began after multiple FIRs were registered with the economic offences wings of the Delhi and Uttar Pradesh Police, following complaints from homebuyers of the Jaypee Wishtown and Jaypee Greens projects alleging criminal conspiracy, cheating and criminal breach of trust. "Thousands of homebuyers paid advances for apartments that were never completed, while their money was allegedly routed elsewhere," the official said. ED said that JAL and JIL collected roughly Rs.14,599 crore from homebuyers - as per figures admitted before the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) - and that "a substantial portion" was diverted to group entities and associated trusts, including Jaypee Sewa Sansthan (JSS), Jaypee Healthcare Ltd (JHL) and Jaypee Sports International Ltd (JSIL). The agency alleged that Gaur, as managing trustee of JSS, oversaw transactions forming part of a "complex web" used to siphon funds for non-construction purposes. The arrest comes after ED conducted search operations on May 23 at 15 locations across Delhi, Noida, Ghaziabad and Mumbai, during which officials seized large volumes of financial and digital records that the agency claims directly indicate laundering and fund diversion....